Pope Leo XIV, who presided over Mass in St. Peter’s Square, said he is troubled by violent and at times “extremely disrespectful” treatment of migrants in the United States. He made the remarks while answering questions from journalists at Castel Gandolfo, the papal summer residence outside Rome.
The pontiff urged humane treatment and respect for the dignity of every person. He acknowledged that countries have the right to control their borders and that legal systems exist to address undocumented residency: “If people are in the United States illegally, there are ways to treat that. There are courts. There’s a system of justice.” He added, however, that although no one is calling for open borders, it is disturbing when people who have lived quietly in a country for 10, 15 or 20 years are treated in ways that are demeaning or violent.
Last week the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops released a special statement criticizing the Trump administration’s immigration policies—language the pope had encouraged the bishops to make strong and clear. In that statement the bishops said, “We oppose the indiscriminate mass deportation of people,” and called for an end to dehumanizing rhetoric and violence directed at immigrants or law enforcement.
The bishops’ message drew a response from Tom Homan, director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement under the Trump administration, who said a secure border saves lives and emphasized that enforcing immigration laws does the same.
On Oct. 27 the administration reported it had deported more than 527,000 migrants since taking office in January. Daniel Burke contributed to coverage of this story.